Brassiere with information carrier

ABSTRACT

A brassiere is provided having a front piece incorporating two breast cups and with two side pieces extending around the upper body of an individual wearing the brassieres, the first ends of which are fastened to the front piece and the second ends of which can be connected in the back area of the wearer. Each of the side pieces has an upper elastic band and a lower elastic band, which are arranged between an outer textile layer and an inner textile layer. According to an embodiment of the invention, a strip-shaped information carrier is arranged in the area of the outer or inner textile layer. In this way an information carrier is integrated into a brassiere in a manner that is lastingly readily visible, and at the same time a high wearing comfort is guaranteed.

This nonprovisional application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(a) to German Patent Application No. 20 2007 006 706.2, which was filed in Germany on May 7, 2007, and which is herein incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to a brassiere.

2. Description of the Background Art

Brassieres of this class are commonly known, and are available in a multitude of variations all over the world. They are constructed of a front section, which essentially comprises two bra cups, which come in a wide variety of different shapes, and which may be connected by a center part. Connected to the respective outer lateral edges of the front section is a side panel, the free ends of which can be joined at the back of the person wearing the brassiere by a back closure. The side panels can be sewn to the front section, or they can be of one piece altogether. For additional support, shoulder straps can be provided, which connect the bra cups with the side panels in the rear. The essential function of such brassieres is bearing the weight, supporting, and shaping the bust. At the same time, such brassieres are expected to provide high wearing comfort and have an appealing look.

In view of the individual anatomy of the women wearing brassieres, their individual taste and preference for certain materials and a certain look as well as the varying occasions a brassiere is worn at, there is a sheer endless variety of brassiere models available on the market these days. Further diversification is due to a large number of manufacturers of women's lingerie.

In order to be able to prevail in this wide range of products, and for orientation purposes, there is a need to inform and to be informed, both from the manufacturers' and the consumers' side. In this context, important information is the brand name as well as specifications regarding model, size, and materials used. Furthermore, washing and care instructions are of interest to the consumer.

In order to supply this product-specific information, it is known to sew, in the course of the application, necessary seams, one end of a band-shaped label of textile material, which is provided with pertinent information, to the inside of the brassiere, whereas the opposite end remains loose. The disadvantage of this type of procedure is that the thickened part of the brassiere, where the labels are attached, or the edges of the labels, can cause skin irritation to sensitive skin, thus reducing the wearing comfort. Therefore, consumers often remove the irritating labels from the brassiere, thus also disposing of the information. Another result of using such labels is that they protrude with their unattached end over the edge of the brassiere, thus diminishing its aesthetic overall look.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of this background, it is an object of the invention to provide an improved method for passing on information about the brassiere to the consumer.

The invention is based on the idea of completely integrating the information carrier in the brassiere in the area of the side panels. A first advantage thereof is that the information is permanently visible and available, while at the same time assuring high wearing comfort. A further advantage is the option to place the information carrier anywhere in the area of the side panels. In this way, by arranging the information carrier in an exposed manner, the information itself can be accentuated, which typically is desirable for displaying the manufacturer's name. Information about size, materials, and care and washing instructions, on the other hand, can be placed in less conspicuous areas.

To integrate the information carrier within a brassiere, it is provided in a beneficial embodiment of the invention to remove the textile layer in the area of the information carrier, and to insert the information carrier in its place. This prevents a negative impact on the wearing comfort or the overall look as a result of the accumulation of a plurality of layers in the area of the information carrier. In a further development of this idea, it is provided for the information carrier to be attached by sewing, whereby the seams are hidden, that is, the longitudinal edges of the outer or inner textile layer of the side panel corresponding to the information carrier are folded over, and the two parts are only sewn together in the area of the foldover.

Furthermore, the information carrier is preferably of a material having elastic properties. One objective thereby is for the information carrier to adapt to the contours of the side panels without forming undesirable wrinkles. Secondly, the information carrier having defined elastic properties can contribute to the wear and support function of the brassiere. This can be accomplished in a further embodiment of the invention such that the information carrier is formed by the upper or lower elastic tape of the side panels, for example, and/or is forming one of these tapes. In this way, the information carrier is an active component within the brassiere for shaping, supporting, and bearing the weight of the bust.

In an embodiment of the invention, the information carrier is arranged on the inside of the brassiere with the advantage that when worn under tight-fitting outergarments, the contours of the brassiere are barely visible.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, the information carrier extends not only in the area of the side panels, but at the same time forms the lower edge of the front panel. The information carrier can thereby extend continuously from one side panel to the other.

In order to further improve both the wearing comfort and the overall look of a brassiere of the present invention, it is preferred, according to an additional embodiment of the invention, to construct the outer and inner textile layer of the side panels as one piece, that is, to fold the textile blank forming the outer and inner textile layer only over the upper and/or lower longitudinal edge of the side panels, and with its longitudinal edges, attach it to the information carrier. If necessary, seams, preferably zigzag seams, for fixing the textile blank into place in the area of the upper and lower elastic tape can be provided.

To make the product information permanently visible, the information on the information carrier can be printed, embroidered, etc. It is also possible to make the information carrier of a certain material that is different from the material the rest of the brassiere is made of, or to give an indication of the manufacturer by using certain shapes or colors.

Further scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given hereinbelow and the accompanying drawings which are given by way of illustration only, and thus, are not limitive of the present invention, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front view of a brassiere according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an interior view of the brassiere illustrated in FIG. 1 in the area of a side panel;

FIG. 3 is a cross section of the side panel illustrated in FIG. 2 along the lines III-III of FIG. 2, at a larger scale;

FIG. 4 is an interior view of a further embodiment of a side panel of a brassiere of the present invention; and

FIG. 5 is a cross section of the side panel illustrated in FIG. 4 along the lines V-V of FIG. 4, at a larger scale.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIGS. 1 and 3 show a first embodiment of the invention. In FIG. 1, a brassiere 1 of the present invention is illustrated in a front view. The brassiere 1 is comprised of a front section 2 having two bra cups 3 for accommodating the bust. The bra cups 3 can be formed of a rubber foam core, which is covered with a textile material, both on the outside and the inside. In their lower area, the two bra cups 3 are connected to one another by a center part 4, which in the instant embodiment has a roughly trapezoidal shape.

Extending along the lower edge of the bra cups 3 is a narrow channel 5 for the accommodation of respective underwires. The opposite upper edge of bra cups 3 is unencumbered, and with its attachment pieces (not illustrated), provides connection points for attaching the front ends of the two shoulder straps 10.

Adjacent to each of the lateral edges 6 of bra cups 3 is a side panel 7, whereby at its free end, the left side panel 7, as seen in the illustration, is provided with a hook band 8, and the other side panel 7 is provided with a an eyelet 9. In combination, hook band 8 and eyelet 9 form a back closure.

The more detailed design of the side panels 7 is illustrated both in FIG. 2, where an interior view of the side panel 7 without the front section 2 is shown, and in FIG. 3, which shows a cross section of side panel 7. Side panel 7 is of roughly trapezoidal shape, the base of which is formed by the lower edge 11, opposite which the upper edge 12 is located. The lower edge 11 and the upper edge 12 determine thereby the direction of the longitudinal extension of side panel 7. In addition thereto, there is an attachment piece 13 in the area of the upper edge 12, which serves as the rear attachment point for strap 10. To the narrower end of side panel 7, hook tape 8 is sewn. The opposite end serves as connecting area to the bra cups 3 of front section 2.

As can be seen in FIG. 3 together with FIG. 2, an elastic tape 14 extends along the entire upper edge 12, one end of which is sewn to hook tape 8 and/or eyelet tape 9, and the other end of which is attached to front section 2. Folded over tape 14 is a textile blank 15, which in this way forms the outer textile layer 16 and the inner textile layer 17 of side panel 7. The textile layer 15 is fixed into place on the elastic tape 14 by zigzag seams. Because it is covered by the outer textile layer 16 and the inner textile layer 17, the elastic tape 14 is thereby not visible.

An elastic tape 19 also extends along the lower edge 11, which is likewise enveloped by the outer textile layer 16 and the inner textile layer 17, and is attached thereto by zigzag seams 20.

The longitudinal edges of textile blank 15 coming together on the inner side are respectively folded to the inside in the direction of the elastic tapes 14 and 19, and together with the tape-like foldovers 23 and 24 created this way, form attachment areas for a tape-like textile information carrier 25. Only the foldovers 23 and 24 are thereby sewn to the information carrier 25 with zigzag seams 26. In this way, the zigzag seams 26 are covered by the inner textile layer 17 when worn so that they are not irritating to the skin or the eye.

In this way, in the area of the inner textile layer 17 in a longitudinal extension direction of the side panels 7, a respective slit-shaped opening of a width equaling the distance of the zigzag seams 26 is created to be closed by the information carrier 25. Thus, a pattern 27 applied to this part of the information carrier 25 is easily visible. The pattern 27 can thereby display the name of the manufacturer, supply information about the brassiere 1, or can be purely ornamental. Pattern 27 can be applied by printing, embroidering, adhesion, welding, or the like.

A particularly preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, which only difference to the previously described embodiment is that the information carrier 25 is formed by the lower elastic tape 19 of side panel 7. Thus, the same reference numerals are used for the same features. In the embodiment according to FIGS. 4 and 5, the upper foldover 23 and the lower foldover 24 are sewn directly to the lower elastic band 19 with zigzag seams 26, in the same manner as described above, whereby, again, a slit-shaped opening is formed, which makes the lower elastic tape 19 visible. By using an elastic tape 19 with corresponding patterns 27, the essence of the invention is realized in this embodiment in a particularly clever way by effectuating the integration of the information carrier 25 into the side panel 7 with the arrangement of the lower elastic tape 19. Thus, the elastic tape 19 itself forms the information carrier 25.

The invention is not limited to the exemplary embodiments illustrated in the drawings but also includes embodiments, which correspond with the object and purpose of the patent claims. For example, the term “brassiere” comprises all women's intimate apparel with built-in bust support, including bikini tops, swimsuits, and bodysuits.

The invention being thus described, it will be obvious that the same may be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all such modifications as would be obvious to one skilled in the art are to be included within the scope of the following claims. 

1. A brassiere comprising: a front section, which includes two bra cups; and two side panels configured to encircle an upper body of a person wearing the brassiere, first ends of the two side panels are attached to the front section, and second ends of the two side panels are configured to be joined together at a back of the person, wherein each side panel includes an upper elastic tape and a lower elastic tape, which are arranged between an outer textile layer and an inner textile layer, and wherein a tape-shaped information carrier is attached in an area of the outer or inner textile layer.
 2. The brassiere according to claim 1, wherein, in the area of the tape-shaped information carrier, the outer or inner textile layer has a slit-shaped opening into which the tape-shaped information carrier is inserted.
 3. The brassiere according to claim 2, wherein the tape-shaped information carrier is attached to the outer or inner textile layer by hidden seams, whereby the longitudinal edges of the outer or inner textile layer, which form the slit-shaped opening, are folded over and are sewn to the tape-shaped information carrier only in the area of the foldover.
 4. The brassiere according to claim 1, wherein the tape-shaped information carrier has elastic properties.
 5. The brassiere according to claim 1, wherein the tape-shaped information carrier is formed by the upper or the lower elastic tape of the side panels.
 6. The brassiere according to claim 1, wherein the tape-shaped information carrier is arranged on the inner side of the side panels, which is a side facing the person wearing the brassiere.
 7. The brassiere according to claim 1, wherein the tape-shaped information carrier is arranged in the lower part of the side panels.
 8. The brassiere according to claim 7, wherein the tape-shaped information carrier extends along the lower edge of the front section.
 9. The brassiere according to claim 1, wherein the outer and the inner textile layers are of one piece, and are folded over the longitudinal edges of the upper tape and/or the lower tape.
 10. The brassiere according to claim 1, wherein the outer textile layer and/or the inner textile layer is fastened at the upper elastic tape and/or the lower elastic tape.
 11. The brassiere according to claim 1, wherein the tape-shaped information carrier is provided with applications, the applications including printed text or embroidery. 